Generally, portable radiotelephones send and receive radio frequency (RF) signals to and from a remote transceiver, commonly known as a radio communication link. This radio communication link allows a portable radiotelephone user to communicate with other people using other portable radiotelephones or land-line telephone equipment. Often, in order to improve the quality of the communication link, a portable radiotelephone employs diversity antennas. Diversity antennas allow a portable radiotelephone to receive the RF signals transmitted from the remote transceiver along two individual paths. Then, the portable radiotelephone may choose either the first path or the second path or a combination thereof in order to improve the communication link between the remote transceiver and the portable radiotelephone.
Today, as portable radiotelephones decrease in size and weight, it becomes increasingly difficult to employ two independent receiving antennas in a portable communication device which would offer an improvement in a communication link. In portable radiotelephones, which include a movable element, or a flap, it would be advantageous to put the second antenna in the flap. Since the flap is hinged to the main housing, it is technically challenging to electrically couple the antenna in the flap to the other electrical components contained within the main housing of the radiotelephone. In the past, the antenna in the flap has been capacitively or inductively coupled to the electronics contained within the main housing. One such example can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 5,014,346. Although this method was successful, it would be advantageous to make a direct electrical connection between the antenna in the flap and the electronics enclosed within the main housing. A direct connection would provide a reduction in the complexity of the connection as well as improved performance of the antenna.